TripAdvisor names top spots for holidays next year

SINGAPORE — TripAdvisor on Thursday (Dec 1) revealed the top 10 most popular destinations for South-east Asian travellers during the travel period of Dec 1 to Feb 28, 2017, in its Year End Value Report, along with the average one-week costs for hotels, airfare, meals and attractions.

According to the report, which is based on TripAdvisor’s site search data, Bali emerged as the most popular destination in terms of traveller interest (and going by search volume) for South-east Asian travellers looking to take a holiday in the new year, followed by Luzon in the Philippines, Hong Kong, Bangkok and Tokyo rounding out the top five spots.

Singapore, Boracay, Phuket Cebu and Seoul made up the rest of the top 10.

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According to the report, Bangkok is the most affordable destination for a week-long trip, with the average cost of one week being S$1,737, including hotels, airfare, meals and a tour.

The most expensive destination was Hong Kong, with a one-week cost of S$2,817.

“This report comes in handy for travellers who are planning breaks in the new year, be it for Chinese New Year or Valentine’s Day,” said Ms Janice Lee Fang, communications director for TripAdvisor, Asia Pacific. 

The seasonal report also highlighted the least expensive week to visit, as well as a list of highly-rated value hotels and must-do bookable tours on the website.

If you’re a beach lovers, for example, you may want to make a beeline for Cebu in the week of Jan 30, 2017, which could set you back S$1,712; while city slickers can head for Bangkok during the week of Jan 16, which would cost S$1,687.